1999 Sunfire passenger side brake and signal intermittent

[PhilBilly360]

I have a 1999 Pontiac Sunfire and I am having an issue with the passenger side brake/signal being intermittent. I have already replaced the bulb twice thinking i may have gotten a defective bulb. I have cleaned the connector and discovered that when i am having the issue with the brake/signal, i unplug the connector and plug it back in. this will fix the issue for a little bit and then it will happen again. Not sure if it is the signal headligh switch or the flash relay. when i was reading on others having this issue, i discovered they were having the issue with only the signal. Their brake was fine. So that led me here to ask the experts. What do you all think? Any information would be great.

 

[melsg5]

which connector are you referring to?
have you cleaned the bulb socket contacts?
is the bulb a solid glass bulb with small metal wires on the outside? if so bend the contact wires out so they more solidly make connection in the socket

 

[cammerjeff]

Most GM Tail Light/Brake Light issues can be traced to a bad ground connection on the plug to the tail light assembly. The stock Plug uses the tab on the side to connect the ground to the metal ring around the socket on the tail light assembly.
The issue is either on the contact surface of the plug to the tail light, or were the tail light assembly bolts to the metal panel that holds it.
I have had to add grounding straps to some of my older cars to solve the issue, if cleaning both surfaces does not work.

I have never liked the design, but it does seem to work fine for about 10 years and that is all the manufacturer cares about.

 

[PhilBilly360]

I have bent the connectors out and seems to be working fine now. I cleaned the part in an ultrasonic cleaner to remove the old dried dielectric grease prior to doing this. I did not bend the connectors out at that time because i was afraid to break off the connection if there was corrosion that i could not see under my tool makers microscope. Sounds like this will solve my problem. I do appreciate both of you and responding to me. This car belonged to my parents. They have both passed within the past year and i am just trying to make sure that this car stays running. I really like the car and have always been a pontiac fan. My dad beat the love of Pontiac into my head at a young age. He loved his 67 GTO but wrapped it around a tree showing off. No comparison between the sunfire and gto but i am going to treat this car like it is one. lol Thanks again guys.

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[PhilBilly360]

I ended up having the same issue again. I replaced the connector with one i got from auto zone. Cost me $20 plus losing my backup light. I do not drive backwards down the street anymore so that does not make me cry. But this fixed the issue and the pontiac is back on the road. Thanks again guys for the quick responses.

 

[bulletworx]

Short connection on the ground is very common especially for these older cars. Use voltage tester to see if the wires are drawing the right amount of voltage.